Archive for July, 2008

Tough news for top local heavyweight prospect Lolohea Mahe. His second fight in a row under the Icon/ProElite banner has been cancelled. Also, the 170-pound state title fight between Keoni Bryant and Ross Ebanez is off the card as well.

Tickets ranging from $35-150 are still on sale at all Blaisdell Arena outlets. Icon is also running a special offer for any tickets valued at $55 or above. If you enter the code “ICONHARDTIMES” at www.ticketmasters.com, you will get $10 of all seats priced at $55 or higher.

Maui’s Kendall Grove and former PRIDE middleweight champion and current UFC fighter Wanderlei Silva will be at the GNC Store in Ala Moana on Aug. 2 from 12 -3 p.m. to sign autographs and talk story with fans.

Silva will also host a seminar from 1-6:50 p.m. on Sunday, Aug. 3 focusing on strength and conditioning as well as mixed martial arts. All levels of ability are welcome and the price is $50 for the strength/conditioning part (1-3 p.m), $90 for the MMA portion (3:30-6:50 p.m.) or $120 for both. For information, call 808-351-3580.

One last thing: Icon Sport’s event is this Saturday, and the press conference open to the public is tomorrow (Wednesday) at 2 p.m. at King St. Cafe. Mark Oshiro, Bao Quach, Kala Kolohe Hose, Rolando Dominique, Phil Baroni and Ron Verdadero are all scheduled to apper. Weigh-ins will be Friday at 2 p.m. at the same place.

I have a feeling BJ Penn just became Georges St. Pierre’s biggest fan.

Regardless of the outcome of the UFC welterweight title fight between champion GSP and challenger Jon Fitch on Aug. 9, St. Pierre will fight Penn at the end of the year according to a source close to Penn.

This comes on the heels of UFC President Dana White saying he has a big announcement planned during Saturday night’s showing of Penn’s last fight against Sean Sherk for free on SPIKE TV. The entire UFC 84 card, featuring Penn/Sherk, Wanderlei Silva/Keith Jardine and Tito Ortiz/Lyoto Machida, will be shown from 6-8:30 p.m.

Obviously Penn would be looking for redemption after his split decision loss to GSP in his UFC “return” in March of 2006. The timing of the announcement seems a little weird with GSP just two weeks away from his title fight with Fitch. Penn/GSP is a blockbuster fight in the MMA world, but I think it loses some of its luster if St. Pierre loses to Fitch.

All that has been confirmed as of now is that a fight will take place, but I’ve heard the bout could be a non-title fight if GSP is still champion. If that’s the case, a Penn victory probably would set up a possible welterweight title fight later next year, maybe as the main event of the UFC’s planned Aloha Stadium event after the sport is regulated in Hawaii in July of 2009? Obviously it’s just speculation on my part, but the timing of it makes sense, especially since it allows Penn to defend his lightweight title some time in the first six months of ’09.

EliteXC’s debut show on CBS at the end of May was so successful that less than two months later, it returns to network television on Saturday night.

The card is highlighted by a rematch between champion Robbie Lawler and Scott Smith for the middleweight belt after the first fight ended in a no contest when Smith was inadvertently poked in the eye midway through the third round. Up to that point, it was nothing but two boxers going at it on the feet back and forth with Lawler having slightly the upper hand.

The rematch figures to be more of the same which means it should be a heck of a fight. Lawler continues to be very patient in his recent fights, which I thought hurt him against Smith. Twice he had Smith in trouble and seemed to lack that killer instinct to end the fight. I think that’s the only thing that saved Smith and things won’t be the same this time around. I’ll take Lawler by KO in the second round to retain the title.

EliteXC will also crown a welterweight champion as prized 175-pound fighter Jake Shields gets his shot at gold against Nick Thompson. Stockton’s own Nick Diaz takes on Thomas “Wildman” Denny and Shayna Baszler will fight Cristiane Cyborg to round out the CBS portion of the show.

Showtime will televise a lead-in to the CBS show that will have prized heavyweight Antonio Silva square off with Justin Eilers to see who will be EliteXC’s first heavyweight champion. Brazilian Rafael Feijao, who was impressive in his destruction of Wayne Cole in Hawaii last month, makes a quick return to the ring as he faces Travais Galbraith.

Both broadcasts will be tape delayed in Hawaii with the Showtime event at 5 p.m. and the CBS show beginning at 8.